Weeding tool



April 29, 1947. s. E. KENNEDY ,2,419,719

WEEDING TOOL Filed May 15, 1944 INVENTOR. SAMUEL E KENNEDY BY v Patented Apr. 29, 1947 WEEDING TOOL Samuel E. Kennedy, San Diego, Calif., assignor to Bruce W. Hardman, Chula Vista, Calif.

Application May 15, 1944, Serial No. 535,573

4 Claims.

My invention relates to a tool for destroying weeds of all kinds, including grasses and the objects of my invention are:

First, to provide a weeding tool by the use of which the operator may destroy the weeds or grass while standing in erect position and without stooping;

Second, to provide a weeding tool of this class which may be either pushed or pulled in the weeding operation;

'Thi'rd, to provide a tool of this clas in which the handle may be readily shifted to various angular positions relative to the weed cutting and pulling blade;

Fourth, to provide a tool of this class in which the blade may be shifted to change the angle of the cutting edge of the blade relatively to the handle to provide for right or left handed use, as desired;

Fifth, to provide a tool of this class with an edging blade, which may be used for narrow places and may be used for removing the grass along the edge of sidewalks or the like in lawns;

Sixth, to provide a tool of this class wherein the handle may be shifted in angular relation with the edging blade portion of the tool; and

Seventh, to provide a tool of this class which is very simple and economical of construction, easy to operate, adjustable throughout, efllcient in operation, and which will not readily deteriorate or get out of order.

With these and other objects in view as will appear hereinafter, my invention consists of certain novel features of construction, combination and. arrangement of parts and portions as will be hereinafter described in detail and particularly set forth in the appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the characters of reference thereon, which form a.

part of this application in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of my weeding tool complete showing the handle fragmentarily; Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken from the line 22 of Fig. 1 showing some of the par-ts in elevation to facilitate the illustration.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts and portions throughout the views of the drawings:

The main blade I, edging blade 2, handle connecting plate 3, handle connecting rack t, handle connecting latch 5, handle connecting latch spring 6, handle connecting plates 1 and 8, handle member 9, blade adjustment plate l8, blade adjustment lever H, and spacers ll, l2 and I3 constitute the principal parts of my weeding tool.

The main blade i is preferably relatively thin steel plate with its main front edge ta on a general be'vel and provided with spaced curved notches lb and the whole edge bevelled backwardly and upwardly from the front edge, as shown best in Fig. 1 of the drawings. The opposite edge I0 is also provided with a lower surface cutting edge in bevelled form and it is preferred that this edge be straight so that it has one cut ting edge corrugated and the other straight.

By shifting the handle on the rack l, it will be readily seen that either edge may be either pulled or pushed against the weeds.

Secured at the normally front side, at one edge and at right angles thereto, is the edging blade 2, which is a narrow blade bevelled and sharpened at M and positioned at a right angle to the blade i and extending forwardly some distance from the front edge la of the blade I, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. When this edging blade 2 is used the blade I is shifted to substantially vertical position and the blade 2 in horizontal position and the handle adjusted accordingly with the blade i, as will be hereinafter described. The handle 9 is connected to the blade 5 by means of a handle connecting plate 3, which is pivotally mounted to the plate near the cutting edge lc by means of a rivet do, and the other end of the connecting plate 3 is free to swing on this rivet 3a. However, it is adjustably supported in the connection with the plate I by means of blade adjusting plate it, which extends transversely across the upper side of said blade l and is secured thereto by means of rivets Ma and Ida. It is, however, spaced from the blade l by means of spacer members l2 and I3 at its opposite ends.

This blade adjusting plate It! is provided with a traverse slot lfib intermediate its ends which is adapted to receive a rivet head lib on the lower side of the rivet I is which is carried by the blade adjusting lever H, as shown best in Fig. 2 of the drawings. This lever H is pivotally mounted on the rivet Ha so that the lever H may be shifted out of the notch liib whereupon the end 31) of the member 3 may be shifted between the blade I and the plate iii whereas the plate 3?) may be on either side of the rivet head ilb for varying the angle of the blade relatively to the handle which provides for angular arrangement of the blade 2 to the handle for use in using the edging blade. This lever member 5 l is provided with an angular extended portion lid to facilitate the shifting of the lever upon its pivotal mounting.

Secured to the upper side of the handle connecting plate 3 at right angles thereto is the bandle connecting rack 4 which is provided at its upper edge with an arcuate outline provided with notches 4a which are adapted to receive the handle connecting latch 5, which is a narrow platelike member provided with rivets 5a and 5b in its opposite end.

Pivotally mounted centrally of the arcuate portion of the handle connecting rack 4 by means of a screw 41) are the handle connecting plates 1 and 8 which are secured to the handle 9 by means of rivets 9a and 92). These plates 1 and 8 are provided with slots la and 8a which are arranged for shifting the latch 5 into and out of, the notches 4a against the compression of the spring 6, the one of which is mounted in a hole 90 inthe end of the handle 9 and its opposite end is mounted on a lug 50 at the middle of the upper side of the latch 5. The rivets 5b and 5c are arranged to prevent the latch 5 from shifting endways in either direction to an extreme.

The operation of my weeding tool is substantially as follows: The tool may be held in the po sition shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings with plate I resting on the ground and may be shoved along. The Weeds will gather in the curved notch portions lb and will be severed along the side edges of the corrugations by the sharpened edge of the blade I. Smaller weeds will be pulled, and the harder ones will be cut off. If desired, the tool may be used by pulling in the opposite direction and using the cutting edge la. The angle of the handle may be shifted by taking the fingers and placing them under the latch member 5 and raising it against the spring '6 and withdrawing it from the notches 4a in the rack 4, the handle may be shifted to varying position; for instance, it may be shifted in the reverse so that the cutting edge Ic may be pushed and the cutting edge lb may be pulled. Then by shifting the lever ll, the free end 3b of the member 3 may be shifted to opposite sides of the rivet head llb so that it is positioned either between the spacer l2 and the rivet [lb or between the spacer l3 and the rivet I lb which will give a different angle to the cutting edges, and when the end 3?) is between the rivet l lb and the spacer I3 provides an angle for the handle in using the edging blade 2 with the handle down in the last notch in the rack 4.

Though I have shown and described a particular construction, combination and arrangement of parts and portions, I do not wish to be limited to this particular construction, combination and arrangement, but desire to include in the scope of my invention the construction, combination and arrangement substantially as set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a weeding tool of the class described, the combination of a main substantially rectangular shaped cutting blade provided with a curved spaced notch cutting edge, said edge being generally bevelled and receding backwardly from one side to the other, and a relatively narrow blade secured to one side thereof at right angles thereto and provided with a cutting edge forwardly of the cutting edge of said main blade, said main blade provided with a straight cutting edge at the opposite edge of said corrugated cutting edge, said blade provided with a handle connecting plate pivotally connected at one end to said main blade, and a latch means pivotally connected with said main blade engageable with said plate for adjustably supporting the free end of said handle connecting plate relatively to said main blade.

2. In a weeding tool of the class described, the combination of a main substantially rectangular shaped cutting blade provided with a curved spaced notch cutting edge, said edge being generally bevelled and receding backwardly from one side to the other, a relatively narrow blade secured to one side thereof at right angles thereto and provided with a cutting edge forwardly of the cutting edge of said main blade, said main blade provided with a straight cutting edge at the opposite edge of said curved spaced notch cutting edge, said blade provided With a handle connecting plate pivotally connected at one end to said main blade and latch means pivotally connected with said main blade engageable with said plate for adiustably supporting the free end of said handle connecting plate relatively to said main blade, and a rack secured to said handle connecting plate at right angles thereto and a handle member adjustably connected with said rack.

3. In a weeding tool of the class described, the combination of a main substantially rectangular shaped cutting blade provided with a curved spaced notch cutting edge, said edge being generally bevelled and receding backwardly from one side to the other, a relatively narrow blade secured to one side thereof at right angles thereto and provided with a cutting edge forwardly of the cutting edge of said main blade, said main blade provided with a straight cutting edge at the opposite edge of said curved spaced notch cutting edge, said blade provided with a handle connecting plate pivotally connected at one end to said main blade and latch means pivotally connected with said main blade engageable with said plate for adjustably supporting the free end of said handle connecting plate relatively to said main blade, a rack secured to said handle connecting plate at right angles thereto, and a handle member adjustably connected with said rack, said rack being arcuate in form whereby said handle member may be adjusted to provide for reverse of said blade in varied angular positions relatively to said handle.

4. In a weeding tool of the class described, th combination of a main substantially rectangular shaped cutting blade provided with a curved spaced notch cutting edge, said edge being generally bevelled and receding backwardly from one side to the other, a relatively narrow blade secured to one side thereof at right angles thereto and provided with a cutting edge forwardly of the cutting edge of said main blade, said main blade provided with a straight cutting edge at the opposite edge of said curved spaced notch cutting edge, said blade provided with a handle connecting plate pivotally connected at one end to said main blade and latch means pivotally connected with said main blade engageable with said plate for adiustably supporting the free end of said handle connecting plate relatively to said main blade, a rack secured to said handle connecting plate at right angles thereto, and a handle member adjustably connected with said rack, saidrack being arcuate in form whereby said handle member may be adjusted to provide for reverse of said blade in varied angular positions relatively to said handle, the handle adjusting means includ- 5 ing a spring actuated latch shiftably mounted in Number said handle and engageable with said rack. 529,562 1,739,489 SAMUEL E. KENNEDY. 1,989,825 5 2,052,331 REFERENCES CITED 1 27,015 The following references are of record in the 432,130 file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS m Number Number Name Date 34,800

2,251,048 Garland July 29, 1941 888,147 Doidge May 19, 1908 Name Date Mortenson Nov. 20, 1894 Wagner Dec. 10, 1929 Schaefer et a1 Feb. 5, 1935 White Aug. 25, 1936 Keeler Feb. 2, '1915 Fenton July 15, 1890 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Sweden Dec. 21, 1910 

